REV'IT! Sand Pants
Review
by Rick K. for webBikeWorld.com
Summary: A perfect match for the
Rev'it Sand
jacket (review), the Rev'it Sand pants are also
styled and tailored for comfort and the duo makes an
excellent all-season
outfit.
Background
Like the Rev'it Sand jacket, the new Sand pants are an
evolution of the
Dakar pants we reviewed a couple of
years ago that matched the Off-Track jacket. The
complete Sand outfit is just slightly less feature-rich than
the top-of-the-line
Rev'it Cayenne
Pro system and surely it will crib sales from same
-- although the Sand outfit may attract new customers
too.
The new Sand jacket and pants should be even more of
a hit with Adventure Touring and Touring riders than the
Off-Track design.
The pants are definitely styled
with the Adventure Touring rider in mind but, like the
Sand jacket, there's a lot more than just style here,
with ride-tested details that have been developed with
owner feedback.
The Rev'it Sand pants are available in Silver or Black.
Rev'it Sand Pants - Styling and Exterior Details The Sand pants in the silver,
gray and black colors shown here literally scream
"Adventure Touring"; a perfect match for the
Sand jacket. In fact, the pants probably have more of an
off-road appearance than the jacket -- at least in the lighter
colors. The Sand pants are also available in
black, which mutes the look somewhat and may be
preferred by some riders. It's all up
to you...
I picked the lighter color because I think it will
work very nicely once the warm weather gets here -- if
it ever does! The comfortable fit and the
tailoring of the Sand pants and the jacket make for an
excellent all-season pairing.
One of the first things noticed about the
silver-colored pants (I'd call it "stone" color) is the
black material that contrasts with the light.
The black accordion pleat at the knee is made from the same protective Cordura used in the rest
of the pants, which is unusual. It isn't easy to
form an accordion pleat from heavy material like this. A special type of
fabric also lines the inside of the legs, and this area
is designed to
provide more comfort when sitting or standing on those
off-road excursions that require standing up while
riding your GS.
The crotch has an extra section of material sewn in
to create extra room and this does seem to make a
noticeable difference. The lower legs use the
low-effort YKK Vislon zippers and are covered by a large
flap that secures with hook-and-loop to the outer pant
leg.
The lower part of the legs feel slightly
wider than normal and this is probably to accommodate a
big set of off-road boots like the
Sidi Crossfire boots (review) or the less extreme
Sidi Discovery boots (review). But there are
four sections of hook-and-loop attached to the pant leg,
each different lengths from short to long at the cuff.
This allows a huge range of adjustment for the pant leg
width.
The combination of the low-effort YKK zipper and wide
opening with the large range of adjustment makes the
pants easy to put on over boots.
Pockets
Each leg of the Sand pants carries a large cargo pocket
and the pockets are easily accessed by a large fold-over
flap designed to keep out moisture while
providing easy one-handed access. The pockets also
feature dual reflective strips that are bonded to the
material without stitches.
The cargo pockets have a secondary pocket underneath
with the YKK Vislon zippers placed towards the inside of
the rider's leg. These zippers have long pull tabs
and the low-effort Vislon zippers provide easy access to
the storage space within.
The pants also have hand pockets on either side,
closed with the YKK Vislon low-effort zippers. The
hand pockets are lined with what appears to be
water-resistant material.
Armor
The Sand pants Prolife CE armor in the knees, perforated
EVA foam in the hips and double material in the seat.
The knee armor is located lower than I'd like, but
that's normal for me, so I removed it and use the
Bohn
Cool-Air Bodyguard armored underpants (review)
underneath, as I do with most of my motorcycle riding
pants.
The Sand pants have only a single waist snap...
...rather than the preferred snap plus hook shown here.
Zippers and Snaps
All of the zippers used on the external shell of the
Sand pants are the YKK Vislon type, discussed in the
Sand jacket review. These zippers were designed
for one-handed ease of use and to work in rough
conditions.
Both liners in the Sand pants use YKK Vislon zippers
also, in a smaller size than the large, beefy zippers
used in the pants shell. Each liner has a
full-length waist zipper and a full-length zipper at the
pants cuff; the latter is very unusual and found on
high-end pants. Zippers used in this fashion
ensure that the liners will absolutely stay put when the
pants are put on or removed, and this is an excellent
feature.
One feature that I do think is missing from the Sand
pants is a metal hook and loop catch for the waist.
We think all motorcycle pants should have a hook in
addition to a snap or other type of closure, because a
hook system provides more confidence that the pants will
stay on in a crash.
Compare the single snap used on the Sand pants in the
upper photo
to the hook and snap used on the Firstgear Escape pants
in the lower photo. My suggestion to Rev'it is to
be sure to include a hook on every pair of motorcycle
pants as an added safety feature.
Water- and Wind-Resistant Liners
Like the Sand jacket, the Sand pants are "4-in-1".
The two liners can be used simultaneously or
individually. So the pants can be worn with no
liners; with the water-resistant Hydratex liner only;
with the thermal liner only; or with both.
Again, both liners are fitted with their own
individual waist and cuff zippers, which is an unusual
and highly recommended feature.
The thermal liner does seem thicker than thermal
liners used in some previous Rev'it clothing; whether
this is really the case or not is open to measurement.
But the dual liners do pose a slight downside, because
they take up about a one size difference in bulk, which
we think is the cause of the sizing issue discussed
below.
Waist and Fit
Once I got the sizing issue resolved and found a size
that fit, I was a happy camper. The waist uses a
type of adjustment system very similar to what is found
on the Sand jacket. I do wish that Rev'it used a
stretch material in the waist however and I think all
motorcycle pants should have stretch material built
right into the pants itself.
At least once I found a pair that fit, the waist is
slightly oversized, so I can utilize the side adjusters
to adjust the fit to my size. The pants do feel
very slightly tight in the hips, about 8" below the belt
line, and there could be a touch more vertical room from
the belt to the crotch, but otherwise they do fit more
comfortably than any other Rev'it pants I've tried and
I'll probably say these are about the most perfect fit
I'll find off the rack -- notwithstanding the sizing
puzzle I'll describe next.
The jacket weighs 2.5 kg (5.5 lbs.) and the pants
weigh 1.8 kg (4.0 lbs.) with all liners installed, which
makes for a nice lightweight combination.
Waist adjuster on the Sand pants. These size XXL
pants
fit the 36" waist shown here.
Sizing
UPDATE: Original
wording has been revised for clarity.
I think the Rev'it
Sand pants are marked at least one and possibly two sizes
larger than the norm, when compared to all of the other
pants reviewed on webBikeWorld.
Unisex Rev'it gear (like the Sand pants) are labeled with letter sizes
-- the letter sizes are used for their Unisex clothing. Rev'it
uses standard letter markings up to XXL, then XXXL (3XL)
becomes "XYL" and XXXXL (4XL) becomes "XZL".
Rev'it men's and women's specifically-sized clothing is
usually labeled with European numeric sizes -- but these
are different than North American numeric sizes.
You may have purchased jackets or leathers with European
sizing. A European size 54 is somewhat equivalent
to a U.S. size L and a European size 56 is similar to a
U.S. size XL.
OK, so that brings us to the Sand pants. The
pants shown here are labeled as size XXL, so I'm
assuming these (and the jacket) are classified as
Unisex.
I normally take a size L (36Wx30L street pants).
But the size L Sand pants felt more like an M with a 34
waist.
A Note on
REV'IT! Sizing From RevZilla
RevZilla told us that REV'IT denotes unisex sizing as:
- XL is XL
-
2XL is XXL
-
3XL is XYL
-
4XL is XZL
Someone who wears a size 34 waist in U.S. jeans will
typically be a LG in REV'IT pants.
However we typically ask
customers to take a "true" waist measurement as
indicated on our
REV'IT size chart.
Next, I tried the Sand pants in size XL. I was
surprised to find that these also were too small for me; I
estimate they have about a 35" waist with both liners
installed.
So that brings us to the XXL pants shown here, which
fit just about perfectly, with a little room for
snugging up the waist.
Based on other motorcycle pants I've
tried, the size XXL Sand pants seem to be the equivalent to a U.S. size L,
although the retailer size chart shows the XXL pants as
fitting a 42.5" to 43.7" waist, or European size 58.
Take a look at the photo above -- that's a
36" waist in what is said to be an XXL pant with a
42.5" to nearly 44" waist!
For comparison, the size XXL Sand pants fit better
and more snug than the size L
Firstgear Escape TPG pants (review) I reviewed about
a month ago and the XXL Sand pants fit like an old
pair of size XL
Rev'it Ultimate pants (review) I still use quite
often in cold weather.
I
checked with the retailer and also with Rev'it, who then
checked with Rev'it headquarters in the Netherlands and
everyone confirmed that there have been no reports of
sizing issues by retailers or customers. Both
retailers agreed that Rev'it sizing may be at least one
size smaller than expected, so the answer is to measure
your waist, check the size charts and discuss with the retailer prior to
ordering.
After wearing the pants over the last few weeks, I
believe that the difference may come from measuring the outer shell sizing
for use in the Rev'it size charts. If correct, this
then would not take into account the twin liners inside
the pants, which take up about one size range.
Thus, if
the pants are starting out one size smaller than
expected, then there's one size taken up by the liners,
voilà!-- there's the two size difference I
noticed!
By the way, the Sand pants are also available in
short and tall sizes and lengths. The regular
length size XXL shown here fits my 30" inseam perfectly,
with enough extra room to accommodate the riding
position.
I hope this explanation is more clear than my
original! As always, it's
important to try before you buy and confirm with your
retailer about sizing and exchange policies. I'm
interested in hearing from owners of Sand pants with
your feedback on how the pants fit and if the size was
as expected. Remember, my experience is based on
one pair of pants by one rider, so it may not be
representative of other owner experiences.
wBW Flash Slideshow: Rev'it! Sand Pants
Conclusion Once I got the sizing issue figured out, I
discovered that the new Rev'it Sand pants are just as
comfortable and easy to wear and use as the Sand jacket.
The pair make an excellent choice
for all-season use and the pants should make an
excellent match for other Rev'it jackets also.
And
by the way, the sizing topic noted above should not
discourage prospective owners; the Sand outfit is
definitely a new favorite and I'm sure it will see many
miles as we head into warmer weather for 2010!
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